The packaging of products for storage and consumption is a significant global industry. Various known packages include cartons, boxes, cans, tubes, pouches, to name a few. Packaged products encompass virtually any type of product that is available for consumption from large appliances to small incidental items.
One of the major types of packaging is the tubular container. A tubular container is generally circular in configuration, although other tubular container cross sections are known, and is elongated about a central axis. Typically, these tubular containers are sealed at each end by an end closure. In some instances, the end closure is provided by a creased or folded seal so that the container takes on what is known as a tooth-paste tube configuration. Other tubular containers have end closures that are either pressed fit or roll sealed on the end of the tube.
When tubular containers are filled with the desired commodity, a bulk supply of tubes is usually provided with each of these tubes having one end closure already in place. The tube is placed vertically in a machine with the open end of the container oriented vertically. The commodity to be packaged is then dispensed into the tubular container and the remaining open end is sealed so that the product is packaged for ultimate use. The sealed containers containing the product may then be further cartoned, if desired, for distribution.
It is known to use tube-filling machines wherein bulk tubes are loaded into a small tube-feeding bin. These tube-filling machines then organize the tubes into a single file stream with the tubes being delivered sequentially to a tube filler assembly. Unfortunately, most of these tube-filling machines have a relatively small tube-feeding bin of only a few square feet in cross section. Since many tube filling machines run at speeds of 60 to 140 tubes per minute, but can reach speeds of 400 tubes per minute. Such a tube filling machines can rapidly exhaust the small supply of available tubes in the tube feeding bin. This requires an operator who continuously loads tubes into the bin. On one hand, this process is very labor intensive and typically requires an operator to constantly attend the tube-filling machine. In addition, the constant movement by the operator of a small quantity of tubes into the tube-feeding bin is not ergonomic.
As a result of these problems, robotic systems are known wherein the robotic system will unload tubes automatically from bulk containers. Typically, these robotic systems are expensive. Moreover, it is difficult for these systems to accommodate or adjust to tubes of varying sizes. Moreover, these robotic systems are usually dependant upon a consistent tube-to-box layout, that is, the bulk tubes must be in a consistent array in all boxes for the robotic system to unload them.
Accordingly, there is a need for improved container loader/feeders that are automated. There is a need for such automated systems to store large quantities of bulk tubes yet retrieve these tubes and sequentialize them for delivery to tube filling apparatus. There is a further need for such equipment to easily accommodate tubes of different sizes and shapes.